1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to knitting needles used for hand knitting, specifically to an improved cord and connection for a circular knitting needle.
2. Description of the Prior Art
For millenniums items with a small circumference such as socks, mittens, sleeves, and hats, have been knitted in a tubular fashion. Originally knitters used a set of multiple knitting needles to seamlessly knit small accessories of this type. The knitting needles featured a point on each end which allowed them to be arranged in a recyclable pattern. The exclusive attribute of multiple double-point knitting needles were their ability to maneuver with the elastic movement of knitted yarn. However, because double-point knitting needles were rigid and not expansive on their own, they were completely dependant on the stretchy characteristic of the knitted item.
At the present time double-point knitting needles are the main option for knitting small circumferences and the most widely available apparatus for this purpose. Their use requires skill and experience, consumes additional time, and challenges the novice. To use double-points it is necessary to employ four or five needles; three or four needles to carry the work, and one needle to transfer the stitches. Skilled knitters encounter a variety of difficulties: to cast on a row of stitches the needles must be held dexterously, with one hand, in a sequential manner to prevent entanglement, as shown in FIG. 10; after a triangular (three-needle) or a rectangular (four-needle) annulus is formed, as shown in FIG. 11, multiple needle points extend from each corner in a cluttered arrangement and they jab the fingers and wrists during the knitting process; each adjacent needle becomes loose and unwieldy as stitches are knitted from it; and double-points made from metal repeatedly slip out of the stitches and fall away from the work.
Thereafter, inventors created several types of circular knitting needles as an alternative method for seamless circular knitting. Troubles associated with small-circumference knitting have been partially solved by the implementation of flexible circular knitting needles, but these had and still have significant problems.
Ordinary circular knitting needles include a pair of needles attached to a flexible cord such as those shown in FIG. 1 of U.S. Pat. No. 4,693,094 to Kahn dated Sep. 15, 1987. They are unsuitable for knitting an item with a small circumference partly because the minimum length (41 cm or 16 inches) is too long to fit the fewest possible stitches, and partly because the flexible cord cannot give-and-take in a lengthwise direction. If the needles are shortened they become too short for the knitter's hand. If the cord is shortened, then the needles cannot intersect at the tips.
Along with the development of circular knitting needles came the problem of how to join the needles to the cord in a way that prevents the yarn from snagging. Several styles of circular knitting needle connectors have been proposed such as the one shown in FIG. 1 of U.S. Pat. No. 4,693,094 above. Another example is the style used in CRYSTAL PALACE™ brand bamboo circular needles by Crystal Palace Yarns, Richmond, Calif. Although efficient in design, and smoothly transitional, separate connectors are yet another element to manufacture and assemble.
The circular knitting needle shown in FIG. 2 of U.S. Pat. No. 5,720,187, to Matuo, dated Feb. 24, 1998, is designed to be used for small circumferences, yet not to be unduly flexed. The same knitting needle, which is manufactured by Clover Mfg. Co., Ltd., Osaka, Japan, forms a one-piece unit (a minimum of 21 cm or 8.25 inches long), in which one needle is longer than the other. As the shorter needle assists the action of the longer needle intersecting each stitch, the unit is constricted. The flattened cord has a fixed length and a limited bending range. The reluctantly bendable cord compensates for the instability of the undersized needles, but constrains hand movement and does not provide enough room for the fingers.
An unusual apparatus is disclosed in FIG. 1 of U.S. Pat. No. 6,397,640 to Williams, dated Jun. 4, 2002. The invention is a combination of double-point needles circumscribed by a tight cord. The moveable cable travels between two knitting needles without a control mechanism, and the grooves can leave an imprint on the fingers of the knitter. Moreover, this style of circular knitting needle is more difficult to manufacture.
Some flexible circular knitting needles have an additional feature of expandability for fitting garments, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 of U.S. Pat. No. 3,280,595 to Linstead, dated Oct. 25, 1966; and also as shown in DENISE INTERCHANGEABLE™ brand expandable circulars by Denise Interchangeable Knitting Needles, Charlottesville, Va. Ideally, during sizing, the stitches do not fall off and the garment remains on the knitting needle. Multiple segments of the flexible cord are connected together in order to elongate the cord. The plastic segments may stretch slightly, which helps to securely hold the end couplings. However, the expansion of the circular knitting needle is dependant on the number of segments. The separate parts require time for assembly and increase the chance for lost or twisted stitches. In addition, there are a multitude of parts to store after the knitting needle is dismantled.
In another example of expandable circular knitting needles, such as that shown in FIG. 2 of U.S. Pat. No. 4,195,496 to Vasquez, dated Apr. 1, 1980, the retractable cord is attached to a reel assembly. As the cord passes through the tubular portion it carries soft fibers that can get caught in the drive belt or form fuzz-balls at the base of the needles. The style and length of cord is limited to the size of the wheel housing. Also, there is a higher probability of mechanical failure.
Thus, to knit a small circumference, one must use awkward or restrictive knitting needles that produce no seam, or else use regular knitting needles and sew up a seam. To fit a garment, one must assemble a kit of needles and accessories, or transfer stitches onto a long piece of yarn. Nevertheless, all the knitting needles heretofore known suffer from a number of disadvantages:                (a) The knitting needles of present use have inadequate flexibility.        (b) A knitting needle cord is flexible yet lacks elastic properties.        (c) Expandability is available only in knitting needles of long lengths.        (d) Lengthwise expansion and contraction requires assembly, disassembly, or mechanical rotation; and is time consuming.        (e) Expandability requires the manufacturing and packaging of multiple parts such as needles, cord, connectors, couplings, and wheel mechanisms.        (f) The knitting needles of present use offer complex and clumsy alternatives for increased flexibility.        